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Republican Candidates Embrace Cuomo’s Appeal

As they seek to maintain a power base in Albany, New York’s Republicans have found an unlikely standard-bearer: the state’s Democratic governor, Andrew M. Cuomo.

Mr. Cuomo is pictured warmly on a postcard sent by Senator Patricia A. Ritchie of the North Country, on the Web site of Senator Carl L. Marcellino of Long Island and even in television advertisements for the second-highest-ranking Republican in Albany, Senator Thomas W. Libous of Binghamton. At least a dozen Senate Republicans seeking re-election are trumpeting their bonds with Mr. Cuomo.

The Republicans, outnumbered roughly two to one in the state’s electorate, are hoping that promoting their ability to work with the popular Democratic governor will help them hold on to control of the State Senate, which is their last stronghold in New York.

“All I heard constantly for the last year and a half was people stopping me saying, ‘Libous, we like what you’re doing with Cuomo. Keep it up,’ ” Mr. Libous said. “It wasn’t rocket science for me to figure out.”

Mr. Cuomo, who has forged a productive working relationship with the Senate Republican leadership, has given Republicans plenty to work with. He often praises Republican lawmakers effusively when he visits their districts. And although he has endorsed a few Senate Democrats seeking re-election, he has passed up several opportunities to say that he would like to see his party retake control of the Senate — a seemingly obvious question, but one that is complicated because the Senate Democrats have been tainted by corruption and chaos in recent years.

“I’m going to make my decisions basically the way the people of the state make their decisions — on a case-by-case basis,” Mr. Cuomo said last Monday as he offered his support for the re-election of a Queens Democrat, Senator Joseph P. Addabbo Jr.

The governor has not objected to Republicans’ use of his likeness. “What I’ve said is, if it’s factually accurate, I don’t have an issue with it,” he told reporters last month. The governor’s top aide, Lawrence S. Schwartz, was more effusive, telling a radio station in Albany on Thursday that “you see both Democrats and Republicans alike, in a bipartisan fashion, putting the governor’s picture on their mail or running TV ads,” and that “everybody is jumping on his bandwagon.”

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Assemblyman Robert J. Castelli, like other Republicans running for re-election, is emphasizing his work with Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo.

The governor, who, polls indicate, is extraordinarily popular among both Democrats and Republicans in New York, has advocated some measures sought by Republicans, particularly legislation passed last year to cap the annual growth of property taxes and to partially repeal a payroll tax that had helped finance the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

But Mr. Cuomo has also championed ideas opposed by many conservatives: he successfully pressed the Legislature to legalize same-sex marriage and to create a new top tax bracket for the state’s highest earners. And parts of the Democratic agenda have been killed by the Republican-controlled Senate, including a proposal to reduce the impact of the New York Police Department’s stop-and-frisk policy by decriminalizing the open possession of small amounts of marijuana, as well as measures to require the microstamping of guns and to increase the minimum wage.

Senator Michael N. Gianaris, a Queens Democrat who leads his party’s campaign committee, said the Republican embrace of Mr. Cuomo was misleading.

“It’s nothing more than a ruse to try to pull the wool over people’s eyes, because by their actions, they are blocking progress on a host of issues that the governor wants achieved,” Mr. Gianaris said. “No amount of fancy pictures is going to trick people into believing they stand for the things they actively oppose.”

In one instance — an Assembly race in the Westchester County district where Mr. Cuomo resides — the use of the governor’s image has become a campaign issue. The Republican incumbent, Robert J. Castelli, has sent several mailings highlighting his relationship with Mr. Cuomo, including one that made it appear as if he and the governor were running mates: it featured a photograph of the two men, along with the words “Castelli & Cuomo: Leadership for Westchester County.” The flip side, under the words “Bipartisan Approach. Real Results,” listed a number of actions supported by both the assemblyman and the governor, like building a replacement for the Tappan Zee Bridge.

Mr. Castelli’s Democratic opponent, David Buchwald, objected, and Democrats sent their own mailer saying, “Bob Castelli wants you to believe he’s one of us ... but he tells the Tea Party he’s one of them, too.”

“I think he’s tried to confuse voters into thinking that the governor’s endorsed him, and that’s not the case,” Mr. Buchwald, a White Plains councilman, said. He added that he wanted Democrats to know “that they have a candidate on the Democratic line that represents our values.”

Mr. Castelli made no apology for his use of Mr. Cuomo’s image and name. “This is not about partisan politics,” he said in an interview. “When a man is right, we should give him credit for what he’s done right.”

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“It wasn’t rocket science," State Senator Thomas W. Libous said of promoting his work with Mr. Cuomo.

All of the state’s legislative seats are on the ballot in November, and mailings featuring Mr. Cuomo are appearing across New York, in many instances with no mention of the party affiliations of the candidate or the governor. One piece of constituent mail from a first-term Republican state senator from Long Island, Lee M. Zeldin, began by reminding voters of increases in taxes and state spending in 2009 and 2010 — “before Andrew Cuomo became our governor and Lee Zeldin became our senator,” it said.

Mr. Zeldin said in an interview that Mr. Cuomo had “far exceeded expectations” since taking office.

“The governor’s success is our success as New Yorkers, regardless of whether our governor is a member of the same political party as you or a different political party as you,” Mr. Zeldin added. “We need to root for that man or woman to have as much success as possible. So I want to be able to work with him in order to actually get things done.”

“The reason I include the references to the partnership with Governor Cuomo, and the good working relationship, is because I believe in truth in advertising,” Mr. Seward said. “And that is the truth. I’ve been in the Senate long enough; I’ve seen the good, the bad and the ugly. And things are good right now.”

Other senators have gone for visual impact. Ms. Ritchie, of the North Country, included a photograph of her standing side by side with Mr. Cuomo along with the declaration: “Governor Praises Ritchie for Two Years of Progress That Changed Albany.” And Senator Mark J. Grisanti, a Buffalo Republican, recorded a television advertisement that opened with footage of Mr. Cuomo praising the senator at an event — “Mark Grisanti, thank you for your leadership,” the governor says — and concluded with the two men embracing each other.

Perhaps no advertisement was more Cuomo-centric than a 30-second commercial produced by Mr. Libous, who is the leader of his caucus’s campaign efforts. The spot features three images of Mr. Cuomo and Mr. Libous, who, the narrator says, “get results” for his Southern Tier constituents.

“I am a very loyal Republican,” said Mr. Libous, who is also the deputy Senate majority leader. “I’ve been a good Republican all my life. But I’m also an elected official who has been charged by the people who elected me to get things done, and right now, that’s going pretty well in New York.”

A version of this article appears in print on October 15, 2012, on page A18 of the New York edition with the headline: Republicans Embracing The Appeal Of Cuomo. Order Reprints|Today's Paper|Subscribe